Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, who fired head coach Joe Philbin last week after mulling doing so several times in the past, was insistent that Philbin remain in charge this offseason, which precluded making a switch in the winter. Mike Tannenbaum, who was formally brought in as Miami's vice president of football operations right after the conclusion of the 2014 season, had long championed the hiring of Seattle defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, sources said, but any pursuit of him was rendered moot by the owner.

THE LATEST FROM SPORTSLINE Pete's Best Bets: Bills won't stop MariotaRoss publically supported Philbin during the season with the Dolphins again sputtering and he was adamant about entering the 2015 season with him still in charge, despite the other changes being made around the organization and despite Tannenbaum's strong support of Quinn. Tannenbaum, who was an agent during his time between NFL stints, had Quinn as a client and obviously had to dissolve that relationship once he went from consulting for Ross to actually formally running his football operation.

Tannenbaum spent extensive time with Ross during last season, sources said, including going on road trips, and Tannenbaum's high regard for the coach was widely known throughout the league.

But the Dolphins never once contacted Quinn or made any attempts to hire the man who currently has the Falcons undefeated and one of the most surprising stories of the first quarter of the season. While the Falcons -- who badly wanted Quinn -- were aware of the relationship between Quinn and Tannenbaum, all of their research continued to point to Ross adhering to his edict on retaining Philbin and, while they did have some initial concern about that relationship possibly leading Quinn to Miami, it never manifested.

“We knew Ross could be loyal to a fault,” said one Falcons source, “and we know how highly Tannenbaum thinks of him. But we were pretty confident he was not going to Miami based on everything we heard, even with that strong connection between agent and coach.”

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross chose not to contact or pursue Dan Quinn. (USATSI)The Dolphins never made as much as a phone call to gauge Quinn's interest -- and by that time it may have been a moot point anyway with the Falcons seen by many coaching prospects as the top job available given the combination of a top quarterback and a division that has been weak. Now the Dolphins find themselves as the first team actively in the coaching market with tight ends coach Dan Campbell now their interim head coach and with Philbin's staff greatly reshuffled during this bye week.

Numerous rival executives anticipate Ross attempting to make a splashy move for an established head coach -- he's missed out on Jeff Fisher, Jon Gruden and Jim Harbaugh in the past -- and expect the Dolphins to make inquiries this offseason as to the possible availability, via trade, of Saints coach Sean Payton. The influence of Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells remains significant within Miami's organization and Payton is one of his prized pupils. Payton has two years remaining on his deal, however.

The Dolphins coaching job has not been very attractive to top coaches during Ross's tenure, and with attendance and market share also an issue for the Dolphins, if Miami ends up hiring an inexperienced head coach it likely won't be for lack of trying to land a big fish.

Quinn seems to have the players bought in to what he's selling. So far, so good. I like that the offense is more balanced....the defense still has me concerned, but is nice seeing 7 or 8 helmets around the ball at all times.

As for the Dolphins and Quinn..... Bah. They are terribly run from the top down. The owner is so much concerned about winning as he is about putting famous people in the seats.